Business sentiment amongst SMEs improve in December

The current diffusion index on business receipts amongst SMEs increased to 45.5.

Overall business sentiment amongst small and medium enterprises (SMEs) slightly improved in December, with the current diffusion index (DI) on business receipts increasing to 45.5 from 44.0 in November 2023.

For January 2024, the outlook DI on business receipts was 47.9. Meanwhile, the current DI on employment increased slightly from 49.4 in November 2023 to 49.5 in December 2023.

The Census and Statistics Department (C&SD) attributed the increase to real estate, business services, and restaurants.

In addition, the current DI on new orders amongst SMEs for the import and export trades increased from 43.9 in November 2023 to 45.3 in December 2023.

Of the 600 SMEs surveyed in December 2023, 4.3%  had credit needs.